


Life Is What Happens While You're Busy Making Other Plans

by storywriter55



Series: Milestones [6]
Category: White Collar (TV 2009)
Genre: Curious four-year-old, Gen, The couple that gets tied up together stays together, Undercover Work, birds and the bees
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-18 19:08:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29862714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storywriter55/pseuds/storywriter55
Summary: There's talk about the birds and the bees, a gala luncheon, a hostage situation and an undercover operation. Just another day in the Ellis-Caffrey household. Part of the Milestones series (4.3 years)
Relationships: Neal Caffrey/Sara Ellis
Series: Milestones [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/80614
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

'So? Anything yet?' Neal asked, looking up eagerly from his computer screen as Sara made her way into the kitchen.

He looked up expectantly while Hope stared down at her bowl of cereal rather unenthusiastically.

'NO, Neal! And stop asking' Sara said, her reply curt.

She headed for the coffee maker and grabbed a cup from the kitchen cupboard, already regretting her terse response.

‘You can't blame a guy for asking’ he said, making his way to stand next to her.

She softened at the sight of his baby blues staring down at her. ‘Sorry…’ she said, touching his cheek. 'Of course, I don’t blame you. It's just… well, I'm anxious too and I feel like I'm disappointing you every time things don’t pan out…’

He interrupted, reaching for her and settling his hands on her slim hips. ‘Babe, what are you talking about? You could never disappoint me. I just…. I just keep hoping that _this_ is the month, that’s all.’

‘What month?' asked Hope, suddenly picking up on her parents' conversation.

Sara and Neal stared at each other. For moment there, they’d forgotten she was sitting there, listening to every word they were saying.

'The month of June!' said Sara spontaneously, not knowing why she was feeling so flustered.

The truth was that the real answer to Hope's question might lead to a lot of other, much more sensitive questions she just wasn't prepared to answer right now.

Neal rolled his eyes at his wife and took a seat next to his daughter, intent on giving her a more complete explanation. The kid was as smart as a whip and nothing got past her.

'Remember, Mommy and I told you we'd like to have a baby brother or sister for you to play with?' he explained patiently.

She nodded, not getting the connection between her innocuous question and her dad's seemingly unrelated answer.

‘Well…' he began, suddenly flustered. He glanced at his watch, realizing he needed to get to the office.

‘Look, finish up your breakfast, sweet pea’ he finally muttered, at a loss for words. ‘It’s time to go.’

This was definitely not the right time to have the 'where do babies come from' talk with his four-year-old. Hope was precocious in all things – she had a healthy curiosity for life and apparently that included the birds and the bees. Add to that, the fact that she’d recently walked in on her parents engaged in a hot and heavy make out session, something which had motivated Neal to install a lock on their bedroom door and had definitely put a damper on his enthusiasm for a couple of days.

She looked up at her dad, puzzled by his response. For some reason she couldn't fathom, her innocent question had elicited an unusual response from her normally cool and collected dad and she finally just gave up, looking down at her bowl of granola and taking one last bite.

With the breakfast dishes collected, the family prepared to go their separate ways for the day. Neal was just finishing up a case he’d worked at the Bureau while Sara had a few more weeks to go at Sterling Bosch before she took time off for that long awaited family vacation they’d been planning for late July. With her stay-at-home dad otherwise occupied, Hope was spending time over at the Masons, the Caffreys’ friends and neighbours and parents to Hope’s best friend Olivia.

She was dropped off before her parents headed to the park and ride, preparing to take the train into Manhattan to their respective jobs.

‘You know, we’re going to have to have _the talk_ with her sooner or later' Neal said as he navigated the car through the streets of White Plains.

'I vote for later... Isn't four-years-old a little young for us to be explaining the birds and the bees?' Sara replied with a tsk.

She would've been more than happy to put off the discussion indefinitely or at least until Hope was well in her twenties but apparently their inquisitive daughter had another timeline in mind.

'I've been reading about sex education for preschoolers online…' Neal said. ‘The important thing is to answer questions directly, use proper vocabulary and not give more information than what they ask for or are ready to hear. You remember the old joke about the father who launched into a long explanation about reproductive sex when his kid asked where he’d come from. Then the kid says, 'Oh, 'cause Johnny comes from Chicago.’’

Sara chuckled. When Hope had walked in on them, she hadn't seemed particularly perturbed, just taken aback to see her dad playing horsey with her mom. She had asked Sara if she was all right because she'd heard her moaning – that and seeing her dad in that unusual pose was enough to make her question whether her mom was hurt in some way. Sara had mumbled something about her and Daddy playing a special grown up game and Hope had finally let it go, leaving Neal totally in shock and reluctant to resume activities until they could be sure they wouldn't be interrupted. After years of Mozzie walking in on them, he couldn't believe he now had to contend with interruptions from an inquisitive four-year-old.

‘What about books, there are books out there that explain where babies come from. Maybe we can pick something up and start getting her ready for… you know’ Sara suggested.

Neal looked up, excitement dancing his eyes at the thought that there might soon be a baby that _required_ explanations.

Sara could read his thoughts all too well. She scoffed. 'Neal, it's two days, okay? I'm just two days late. Please, don't read too much into it' she said, hoping to bring his expectations down a notch.

Since her cancer surgery more than two years earlier, they’d been working diligently at having a second baby. They knew the odds were against them – after all, Sara only had one functioning ovary and add to that the residual damage from chemotherapy and Sara’s gynaecologist had given it a twenty percent chance of success at best. But Neal hadn’t been dissuaded in the least. He continued to hope and give it his best shot, reading about all the little things they could do to improve their odds including encouraging Sara to lay still in bed for twenty minutes after every lovemaking session – a new habit that was driving her crazy.

'This _could_ be it, though!' he added with a twinkle in his eye as he parked the car and glanced at his wife.

WCWCWC

‘Olivia said that daddies pee inside mommies to make babies' Hope said, totally out of the blue as Neal prepared to tuck her into bed.

His mouth dropped open, not quite sure how to respond. One thing was for sure, he needed to nip this tidbit of misinformation in the bud.

'Honey, daddies do _not_ pee inside mommies to make babies' he responded calmly, hoping that was enough of an answer.

‘Then how _do_ you make babies?' she asked, looking at her dad, eyes bright and curious.

Neal wondered momentarily how _he’d_ gotten roped into putting Hope to bed and he took a deep breath, reminding himself of the importance of keeping the information factual and brief. This was the perfect opportunity to use his refined ability at deflection although he didn't want to be dishonest in any way with his daughter.

'Well, you _do_ need a mommy and a daddy to make a baby' he continued looking at her and gauging her reaction.

'Okay' she said, seemingly satisfied. She turned and grabbed her stuffed elephant and placed it on her pillow.

Neal did a double take; was that really all there was to the question? He sighed in relief - a little prematurely it seemed.

'So then, how _do_ they make it?' she continued.

Dammit, he'd almost gotten away with that one.

He cleared his throat, reminding himself that they had always been honest with Hope and careful about using accurate vocabulary to describe body parts and bodily functions. This wasn't the time to go all modest and shy on her; after all, sex was one of the most natural things on earth… and so were babies.

'Well, daddies have what's called sperm and mommies have eggs that are called ovaries and when they get together, it makes a baby' said Neal, trying to sound casual and wondering why this was so difficult even for him, Mr. Silvertongue.

'Okay' said Hope once again as she turned and snuggled up to the stuffed toy. 'Good night, Daddy!’

'Goodnight, sweet pea' he replied as he playfully tugged her nose.

He made his way back downstairs to the family room where Sara was sprawled out on the couch catching up on e-mails and sipping on a lukewarm cup of tea.

‘I just dodged a bullet’ he muttered as he took a spot next to her on the couch.

'What?' she asked absentmindedly, her eyes still glued to the screen.

‘Hope just asked me how babies are made’ he confessed.

She glanced in his direction, noticing a decidedly flushed look on his face.

'You're kidding! Wow, I’m glad I offered to clean up after dinner' she replied with a playful grin.

He gave her a sarcastic smirk as he continued. ‘I got away with giving her a minimum of information and she seems satisfied for the time being but… you know Hope, she'll be back with a follow-up question before you know it.’

Sara was half listening, intent on getting through the numerous e-mails she hadn't had time to get to during her day at the office. There were meetings to set up, instructions to pass on to her underlings and numerous responses to provide to her superiors.

‘There's a bookstore up the street from the office’ Neal continued, his mind still on their daughter’s natural curiosity. ‘Maybe I could stop in and see if I can find an appropriate book for her.’

‘Sounds good' Sara replied, distracted as she continued to read.

'Good, because the next round is all yours' he said, jostling her and making her giggle.

‘So…’ he added, laying his head on her shoulder. ‘Anything… new?’

‘Neal, please! You'll be the first to know, I promise' she said, pushing him away playfully and returning to her laptop.

Her facial expression went from amused to annoyed. ‘No, this can _not_ be happening!' she shouted in response to something on her screen.

Neal sat up, startled by her outburst. ‘What? What is it?’

'My staff appreciation luncheon at the Kent on Thursday…'

‘Yeah?’ he said, urging her to continue.

'They've moved us to the Fountain room from the Ballroom' she said, madly typing on her keyboard.

Neal looked at her, puzzled.

'There was a kitchen fire at the Westin and this stupid art exhibit is being moved to the Ballroom at the Kent.’

'Oh yeah?' Neal said, the words _‘art exhibit_ ’ getting his attention. ‘That exclusive Renoir exhibit – with the private owners?’

He and Peter had been discussing that very event earlier in the day. Private owners across Europe and North America were holding an elite conference to discuss the artist, his life and times and share pieces from their private collections. He had actually consulted on the security with the Westin to make sure they'd taken all necessary precautions to prevent a theft.

Elite art exhibit or not, Sara was fuming. She'd been entrusted with organizing Sterling Bosch's staff appreciation luncheon and had been working non-stop on the project for the past month. The company had upwards of a hundred and twenty employees and it wasn't easy to find a suitable venue in New York. Sara had worked diligently, seeing to every detail including the menu, staff appreciation gifts, speeches, entertainment and of course the location, which was the most important element of all.

She scrolled down to the attachment of a previous email, noting a clause in their contract with the hotel clearly stating that the Kent reserved the right to move them to another comparable room at their sole discretion. How had she let that clause slip by her?

‘Damn it!’ she exclaimed as she madly began banging a response to the hotel. ‘I _really_ wanted the ballroom.’

Neal took one look at the crazy lady sitting next to him. He knew better than to cross Sara Ellis and he'd learned a long time ago to stay out of her way when she got like this.

'I think I heard Hope calling' he lied, standing and escaping out of the room.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

'How's the report coming?' Peter asked mischievously as he strolled down to the bullpen and stopped directly in front of Neal's desk.

Neal had finished paying his debt to society almost four years earlier and had been anklet free ever since, doing freelance work as an art authenticator for a number of insurance companies as well as working the odd case for the FBI. This latest case had resulted in them collaring a thief who had successfully broken into the homes of a half dozen of New York's elite before getting caught when Neal had identified his next likely target.

Just to bug him and because he could, Peter had assigned the odious task of writing up the case report to his ex-partner which, as far as Neal was concerned, was beneath him and had always been the worst part of any case.

Neal gave him his ex-handler his best bored look and shook his head. 'Explain to me again why I still have to write these damn reports now that I'm no longer your CI.’

'Because you're a junior member of the team and I like to torment you every chance I get' Peter replied – which of course was exactly the reason why.

‘Oh… did you buy me a book?' he teased as he grabbed for the Barnes and Nobles bag Neal had left on his desk.

Neal crossed his arms, waiting for the inevitable moment Peter would realize what he was holding and anticipating the embarrassed look he was about to see on his best friend’s face.

‘Oh…’ Peter said as he took in the title of the book. ‘I guess this is… for Hope.’

‘Yeah it is. Unless you’re feeling an irrepressible need to find out how babies are made’ Neal replied smugly. ‘As a matter of fact, I was thinking you wouldn’t mind reading it to her when she comes over to your place this weekend.’

'Hum…' an embarrassed Peter said as he slipped the book back inside the bag.

'Believe it or not, your goddaughter is already asking questions about babies and how they're made' Neal said.

Peter winced at the thought. ‘Really? But she's only four years old.’

‘You're the one who’s always saying she’s smart beyond her years’ Neal reminded him.

He dropped his voice and leaned forward as he continued. ‘Plus, she walked in on Sara and me the other night…'

Peter groaned at the thought.

'Needless to say, I've installed a lock on our bedroom door' Neal added.

Peter nodded in agreement as he thought of how uncomfortable he would be if he and Elizabeth had suffered a similar fate. Hope slept over there frequently and he would have to talk to El about making sure they avoided a similar incident.

Apparently, Neal hadn’t quite finished with his confessions.

‘Guess what?’ he whispered as if he was sharing some sensitive piece of intel. ‘Sara might be pregnant.’

'Really?' said Peter. 'That's great!’

'Well, it's a little too early to tell for sure but a guy can hope' Neal said wistfully.

They were interrupted by a determined looking Diana who appeared before them with Jones following not far behind.

‘Peter, there's a robbery going down at the Kent Hotel.’

Neal's ears perked up as he recalled how the art exhibit had been moved there. ‘I heard last night they’d moved the Renoir exhibit there’ he said, getting to his feet.

'The Renoir exhibit? The one that was supposed to take place at the Westin?’ Peter asked.

‘Yeah, apparently there was a kitchen fire at the Westin’ Neal explained as Peter began to mobilize his staff.

‘Call NYPD’ he ordered.

‘They’re already on the scene’ Diana said. ‘Apparently, there's a hostage situation.’

WCWCWC

Sara left her office just after noon to make her way to the Kent Hotel. She was spitting nails over the hotel's decision to move Sterling Bosch’s luncheon to a smaller room and she had called and requested a meeting with the event coordinator in order to discuss the situation. She had twenty-four hours in which to convince him to change his mind and she was determined to give it her best shot.

Wesley Jennings had been more than helpful and solicitous when it was time to sign the contract but he seemed to be falling down somewhat on the follow through. Getting him to agree to meet with her had been like pulling teeth and she realized the chances were slim that she would get him to change his mind. But she could certainly give it a try, maybe even get him to sweeten the deal if she could make him feel bad enough. Why should a stupid kitchen fire at the Westin have an impact on Sterling Bosch's long awaited staff appreciation luncheon?

In her role as senior insurance investigator at the top notch firm of Sterling Bosch, Sara Ellis had approximately a dozen investigators and four administrative staff reporting directly to her and she knew how hard each and every one of them worked. She’d been in the field long enough to know how gruelling and time consuming the job was. She’d volunteered to spearhead the organization of the luncheon and she'd been looking forward to giving each of the members of her team as well as the rest of her Sterling Bosch colleagues a luncheon to remember.

She sat in a city cab, thinking about Hope and her sudden interest in babies. Maybe she knew something she and Neal didn't know yet. She absent-mindedly touched her stomach, smiling longingly. Her period had been due on Sunday and she hadn't wanted to get too far ahead of herself. Again! Ever since her cancer surgery, her periods had been slightly off and she'd had more than a few disappointments over the past two years as she and Neal continued to work diligently at giving their daughter a sibling.

It seemed that with each passing month, Neal was always a little more disappointed than she was and she vowed that if this was just another false alarm, she would keep any future expectations to herself so she wouldn't have to see the regret in his eyes when it inevitably fell through. It would be tough though because he watched the calendar like a hawk and he would monitor her cycle on a daily basis. At some point, she wasn't sure when, they would have to make peace with the fact that Hope might be an only child.

It was 12:50 when she arrived at the hotel and she made her way down to the service quarters on the lower lobby where she had met with Mr. Jennings once before. She could hear sounds coming from the service entrance as she walked by and she peeked in noticing some crates and boxes in what appeared to be a loading dock/mail room. Probably the art from the exhibit which was going to be set up for the following day, she mused. She strode through the bowels of the building, her stiletto heels click clacking against the cement floor, until she arrived in the small office where the event coordinator had met with her on her previous visit. She peeked into Wesley Jennings office and waved to let him know she'd arrived.

‘Ms Ellis, come in, come in’ he said. 'Please, have a seat.’

She gave him an obligatory smile, not enough to disguise her annoyance. ‘Mr. Jennings, I appreciate you seeing me although you may not be very happy when you hear what I have to say' she said, taking a seat across from him.

'I understand you're disappointed about us moving your luncheon to another room but I can assure you that the Fountain Room…’

She interrupted. ‘I know, I know, it's a lovely room… It's just not the room we had in mind when we chose the Kent for our event' she reminded him.

He could see from the look in her eyes, she was one badass lady, someone you didn’t want to wrangle with if you could help it. He’d already thought of a plan B and he was eager to share it with his unhappy client.

‘Ms Ellis, I'd like to suggest a few upgrades to our original contract. It would be my pleasure to throw in a couple of gift certificates for two nights' stay here at the Kent' he began, hoping to bring her around.

Sara smirked. Game on. ‘That's all very well Mr. Jennings’ she replied, not satisfied in the least. ‘But that doesn't give me the room I was promised for my luncheon.’

'Perhaps if we added —’

He was interrupted by a loud popping sound coming from up the hall. If Sara didn't know better, she would have sworn it was a…

A second gunshot was heard and this time there was no mistaking the all too familiar sound. Sara instinctively stood to make her way towards the noise followed by Mr. Jennings who had taken the time to call security before making his way behind her. She made a turn down a long hallway and into a room off the loading dock, walking straight into a masked man as she turned the corner.

She let out a yelp as the man reached for her arm with one hand while pointing a gun in the direction of the event coordinator.

‘Don’t move’ he shouted as Jennings took a step back to retreat. The deafening sound of a gunshot rang in Sara’s ears and she watched in horror as the event coordinator reached for his shoulder, panic filling his eyes.

The shooter’s hand tightened around Sara’s arm as he dragged her into the room behind them, pulling her off balance.

‘Ouch!’ she shouted, feeling her ankle twist beneath her. She watched in dismay as the hell of her shoe broke off and sat there on the cement floor, her expensive shoe in two distinct pieces. 

‘Asshole!’ she muttered under her breath. Those were six hundred dollar Louboutins and she'd only worn them twice. She struggled to get free from her assailant but she was no match for the six foot two thug who roughly pushed her into the room, slamming the hallway door behind him and leaving Wesley Jennings to his own devices.

'What are you doing, Mateo?' asked a second masked man who was pacing the large room, glancing nervously towards the door leading out to the loading dock.

'Shut up' the man who’d been referred to as Mateo replied gruffly as he pushed Sara towards a metal chair that sat by a desk.

'I just got us a little insurance policy, that's all. This pretty little lady is going to make sure we get out of here with what we came for' he said.

Sara quickly took stock of the situation. The open space was large and opened out to an outdoor loading dock. She could see mail slots filled with envelopes and small packages ostensibly destined for the various departments of the hotel. As her eyes swept the room, they came to rest on a uniformed man lying motionless on the ground by the desk. She shivered at the realization that the man was dead, blood beginning to pool around his inert body. She gasped as she was thrown down on a metal chair, her legs finally giving out. 

‘Get some rope’ Mateo called out to a third masked man who’d suddenly appeared.

The man disappeared into a back room, returning with a spool of nylon twine and making his way to where Sara sat, her hair mussed and her breathing shallow. She kicked off her remaining shoe as her mind began firing on many levels all at once and she reminded herself that keeping her wits about her was essential if she was going to get herself out of this conundrum.

All around the room were crates and boxes, obviously the treasure the trio of thieves had come for. She couldn't fathom how the art could have been left unsecured save for the poor employee who had just lost his life over it. She remembered Neal saying that he had consulted with the Westin on security measures and she deduced that the move to the Kent had happened so unexpectedly that things had been done without the necessary security.

'You're a pretty little thing' said the third man as he took his time wrapping Sara's wrists securely and running his hand suggestively down her arm. She smelled his foul breath on her face as he spoke and she winced in response.

‘Joey!’ came Mateo’s voice. ‘Cut it out! Just do as you're told.’

Whoever these three men were, it was obvious that this Mateo guy was the ringleader and that they had all gotten themselves into a mess they hadn't foreseen.

Of course, she was a fine one to talk... she'd just managed to get herself right in the middle of a hostage situation.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

‘Peter, send me in' Neal pleaded.

Peter stared back, eyes wide. ‘No, Neal! I'm not sending you into a hostage situation' he replied, brushing him off.

They’d arrived on the scene to find that NYPD had cordoned off the front of the hotel and had cars flooding the vicinity. Peter had taken over the operation and had begun discussing strategy with the senior police officer on site, a lieutenant Sanders, who seemed to be a reasonable man and had welcomed the White Collar Unit's arrival on the scene. They were joined by the hotel's manager, a young man who was clearly out of his depth but who had been instrumental in providing plans of the building as well as a list of employees and guests.

Neal continued, unrelenting. ‘Look, I can go in as a security guard or a maintenance guy... At least, you'll have ears on what's going on in there. Nothing heroic, I promise.’

Peter knew all too well that his partner and best friend could talk his way out of pretty well any situation but he wasn’t about to put him in a perilous situation if he could help it. With the assistance of the NYPD, he’d set up a perimeter around the loading dock of the hotel where they suspected the thieves were holed up. An employee from the loading dock was missing in action and with the report that an innocent bystander had been taken hostage, the operation had just gotten all the more dangerous. One staff member of the hotel had been shot in the shoulder and had been whisked off to hospital. He had yet to be interviewed and although the hotel had been evacuated, they had no idea who they were dealing with.

The hotel manager had confirmed that the art had arrived that morning by armoured truck but once it had been left at the loading dock, it was under the supervision of one lone employee until bonded staff arrived in early afternoon to move the art to the hotel's ballroom under security surveillance. The move to the Kent had been sudden and had been kept under wraps and those responsible for the exhibit had felt confident the window was very small for anyone to make a move on the coveted art. Obviously, they had been wrong.

Peter looked at Neal, unblinking. Neal was right about one thing. It _would_ be helpful to get someone on the inside so they could ascertain who exactly they were dealing with. Peter sighed deeply at the realization that if anyone could sweet talk his way onto a crime scene and provide them with the intel they needed, it was Neal Caffrey.

‘ _If_ I send you in there…’ he began, wavering. ‘If I send you in there, I don’t want any high jinks.’

Neal nodded. ‘I promise. I’ll just let you listen in and that way you can find out what’s going on in there. Peter, there’s an innocent person in there. If we have any chance of getting him out…’

Peter briefly glanced at Jones and Diana who were standing by awaiting orders and he could see they were also holding their breath to see what he would decide.

Peter let out a long slow exhale. ‘All right, fine’ he finally said. ‘But listen to me, I mean it, Neal… Just try to get us some information on what's going on and don't play the hero.’

Neal nodded. ‘I won’t’ he said as Peter handed him a one-way transmitter in the form of a watch.

‘Can you get me a hotel uniform’ he asked the hotel manager who immediately jumped into action.

Neal had always been one of the Bureau’s best assets and Peter trusted that if his ex-CI was offering to go in, it was because he was confident he could do things safely and bring the hostage situation to a peaceful resolution. Storming the place precipitously was not an option with at least one hostage's life hanging in the balance and they already knew these guys weren't afraid to use the guns they had at their disposal.

Within five minutes, Neal had morphed into a member of the maintenance staff of the Kent Hotel complete with an unflattering green uniform identifying him simply as 'Tim'.

Peter hovered, giving him some last minute instructions. ‘Now listen, if you can get yourself and the hostage to a safe place, let us know and we'll storm the room. But if you feel you or the hostage are in any immediate danger, just say _'What are you guys after, anyways?_ ' and we'll be right there.’

Neal nodded once again, eager to get going with his mission. Some poor innocent person was being held hostage inside and he needed to know if the loading dock attendant was safe.

'Right' he answered, adrenaline pumping through his veins.

WCWCWC

The hotel was deserted as Neal made his way to the lower floor. He had taken a quick look at the building plans and knew where he was headed; he just hoped the thieves wouldn't be trigger happy when he made his sudden appearance. His best bet was to announce his arrival in order to avoid surprising the thieves and provoking a knee jerk reaction which could easily end with his face on the wrong end of a pointed gun. As he took the last few steps towards the shipping dock, he took a deep breath and called out loudly as he opened the door.

‘All right, Phil. It's time for your break' he called out as he opened the door and peered inside.

He immediately caught sight of the three masked men with their guns drawn and instantly put his arms up in surrender, showing the trio he was no threat to them.

'Whoa, whoa, what's going on here?' he said, in mock surprise.

'Who the hell are you?' said one of the men brandishing a gun as he made his way towards Neal. He looked him over and began waving the weapon in his face.

‘I’m… I’mjust here to relieve Phil for his break' Neal stuttered, feigning shock as he was pulled into the room by the first man.

He glanced around the open space, his eyes drawn to the body lying by the desk. As shocked as he was at the sight of the dead employee, he was even more stunned at what he saw when he looked up, totally astounded at the sight of who else but his wife, tethered to a chair.

He managed to keep his wits about him, realizing he had a job to do. He needed to let Peter know the hotel employee had been fatally shot.

'Is ... is that guy d..dead?' he asked, his eyes returning briefly to Sara's face.

It was difficult to say which of the Caffreys was more shocked to see the other. Neal had no idea Sara was even going to be at the hotel and he began to deduce that she had probably come to share her displeasure with the guy who had messed with her precious luncheon plans. Sara, on the other hand, looked Neal up and down, dressed in a maintenance uniform and knew immediately that the White Collar Unit had been called in and that he had offered to go in and do recon.

'This just gets better and better. Just what we need, another hostage' said Mateo sarcastically.

'Get your ass in here and keep your big mouth shut' he shouted at Neal as he dragged him over to where Sara was tied up.

He began pacing the room nervously as his two cohorts stood waiting for their orders. Finally, Mateo looked up.

'What the hell are you waiting for Joey?' he barked to one of his fellow thieves. 'Tie him up!’

Neal glanced at Sara whose face had slowly begun to regain some colour. He looked into her eyes in an effort to convey that, despite the obvious, everything would be okay and he would find a way to get them out of this mess. A second chair was pulled out and Neal was unceremoniously dumped in it as he continued to play his role as the hapless maintenance guy who had somehow stumbled onto the unfortunate situation.

WCWCWC

Peter sat in the van where the team had set up to listen to the goings on inside the hotel. He and Jones listened through headphones, waiting for some clue as to who they were dealing with and what was going on inside. Before devising any plan, they had to know what they were up against, the number of intruders, possibly their MO and more importantly their state of mind. Two lives were at stake and from what Neal had just blurted out, the loading dock attendant had been killed when he’d foolishly tried to intervene. There was no room for error if they were going to carry out this operation to a safe conclusion for all involved. They could hear Neal talking through their headphones.

'Why don't you let this lady go?' he was saying. 'You don't need two of us.’

'Shut up!' shouted Mateo. 'You're not running the show here… Tim' he added as he looked down at Neal's name tag.

Neal had been in a lot worse messes in his life but he had never been in a situation where he’d had to worry about his wife's safety as well as his own.

'What's your name?' he asked softly, pretending that he was simply trying to reassure her. He needed to let Peter know who was sitting next to him and Sara knew immediately that's what he was trying to do.

‘Sara Ellis’ she murmured softly.

Peter and Jones exchanged looks, shocked at the revelation. How the hell had Sara gotten herself mixed up in this? It was one thing to have Neal undercover when he had all his wits about him but this was a whole other matter. Not only did his ex-CI have to manage a potentially dangerous situation, he would be worried about keeping his wife safe as well. Peter thought back to what Neal had confided in him barely an hour before – if Sara _was_ pregnant, that just made the situation even more volatile and could throw Neal even further off his game.

'Shut up you two' screamed the ring leader, once more. 'You see this guy here?' he said pointing to poor Phil who had paid with his life for interfering in the trio's plans.

'He tried to be a hero and look what happened to him' he shouted, brandishing his gun.

Neal took a deep breath. He needed to back off and diffuse the situation. He knew Peter was listening to everything – he just needed to let the men talk in the hopes that they would provide some helpful clues that would help Peter and the team prepare an exit plan.

'What are we gonna do, Mateo?' said the third man who hadn't spoken yet.

Mateo nervously looked out at the loading dock. He could see police cars nearby and realized that their planned exit strategy was no longer a valid option. Their only hope was to negotiate in order to leave with the goods and for that they needed their hostage or in this case, hostages.

The phone rang on the desk breaking the eerie silence and Neal glanced briefly at Sara. That would likely be Peter, reaching out to the thieves to begin to negotiate a deal for their release.

Mateo walked over and pushed the intercom button and suddenly Peter's voice was flooding the room.

'This is Special Agent Peter Burke from the FBI. Who am I talking to?' he said authoritatively.

Neal relaxed a little at the sound of his partner's familiar voice.

Mateo laughed, his twisted chortle resonating in the cavernous room.

'You just never mind who this is. What you might be interested in knowing is that I have a couple of reluctant guests with me here that I would gladly give back for the right price' he countered.

Peter looked over at Jones, picking up on a slight accent in the voice – Mexican or Spanish perhaps?

'Are your guests safe?' Peter asked.

'For now' said Mateo, cryptically.

'I want to talk to them' said Peter.

Mateo pointed to Neal with his gun, signalling he could speak up. 'No funny business' he added.

‘I’m… I’m Tim Morley, I work maintenance here at the hotel' Neal said haltingly as he continued to play his befuddled role to perfection.

The thug then pointed at Sara. 'My name is Sara Ellis' she said simply.

'What about Phil Jackson?' Peter asked, already knowing the answer.

'He's slightly indisposed at the moment' replied Mateo with a sick smile on his face as he looked down at the corpse nearby.

'I need a show of good faith' Peter continued. 'If you want us to play ball with you, you need to let one of your hostages go.’

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

'Call back when you have something useful to say’ Mateo shouted angrily as he disconnected the call. ‘And get those damn police cars away from the loading dock if you want to talk to me.’

Peter turned towards Diana who was standing by with a couple of members of the Harvard crew.

'Diana, see if you can find anything on a guy with the first name Mateo and a second guy, Joey – Hispanic, I think.’

'Right, boss' she answered as she began plugging away at her computer.

'And get Sanders to back off outside the loading dock. The police presence is making them nervous. I don't want them getting trigger happy. They've already shown us they're not afraid to use a gun.’

Peter returned to his headphones hoping to find out a little more.

'Mateo' said a voice they hadn't heard before. 'What are we gonna do about Manny?’

'Don't worry about Manny, he's staying in the wings until we need him.’

Peter piped up again, turning towards Diana 'And there's a Manny. See if these guys are part of a crew. I get the feeling they're family or something.’

'Sure thing boss' replied Diana.

‘Jones…’ continued Peter. 'I think we probably have a van or truck lurking on a nearby street. Take a drive and see if you see anything suspicious but don't intervene just yet.’

'Got it' answered Jones as he prepared to leave the van with two of the crew.

WCWCWC

The room grew quiet for a moment as the trio of thieves paced and monitored the goings on just outside the loading dock. Although the dock was visible to anyone looking out from the inside, the reverse wasn't the case. Despite the large opening – big enough for a truck to back up into – anyone looking in was hampered by strips of heavy plastic ostensibly put there to keep the elements out of the loading dock. As the thugs watched, they could see the squad cars begin to pull away and out of view.

Sara and Neal sat in silence, letting Peter pick up on the exchanges between the men and draw his own conclusions. Neal had been paying attention to what had been said and thus far he summed up that the thieves had unwittingly revealed the following to the crew sitting in the van a block away: the hotel employee had been killed, Sara was being held hostage and Peter knew the first names of two of the three crooks plus the fact that someone named Manny, most likely their driver, was out there somewhere, awaiting instructions.

Neal glanced at Sara once more, hoping to keep her calm and centred. She was looking remarkably serene despite the unusual flush in her cheeks. With a quick check to make sure their abductors weren’t watching, he gave her a subtle wink and a smile.

She had never seen her husband quite like this, knee deep in action, focussed and doing the job she'd always known he excelled at. Over the years, he’d proven time and time again that he could work under pressure, remaining calm, all the while finding solutions even when there seemed to be no way out.

The trio began whispering and Neal took advantage of the situation, glancing over at his wife once more.

'I'm going to try to get them to let you go' he said under his breath.

'No' whispered Sara. 'I'm not leaving you here alone.’

'Sara, please…’ he murmured insistently. ‘This is one of those rare times you've got to do what I tell you. I know what I'm doing.’

'Hey, shut up over there' called out Mateo from the huddle in the middle of the room.

'Look' he said to his cohorts. 'I just want to get the hell out of here with some of this loot. Maybe the Fed is right – let's let the guy go. It’ll give us some leverage and we'll still have the girl. She's worth more to us anyway, chicks always are.’

'Well, she's certainly prettier than he is' added Joey with a leer in Sara's direction.

'Stay focussed, Joey' Mateo barked.

Neal could sense that they were about to make a move. If they were planning on letting him go in exchange for some concession from the police, that would leave Sara on her own – and he was definitely not letting that happen. He needed to make himself indispensable to the crooks somehow, and an idea occurred to him as he thought back to the building plans he'd had a glimpse of earlier.

WCWCWC

Peter turned to his team, huddled in the van. 'Diana, anything on these guys, yet?'

'I think I found something… Mateo Suarez, his brother Manny, Joey Santos and Jose Perez. They were arrested for fencing stolen goods and suspected in that heist at the Weston Museum last year. They go by the crew name 'Mexican Maniacs'. Small time, really - but from a gang background and certainly not afraid to use guns.’

‘All right' sighed Peter. 'Keep digging, I want to know everything you can find out about them. I'll try to make contact again. Neal can handle himself but if we can at least get Sara out of there…'

The phone rang on the late Phil Jackson's desk once again and Mateo walked slowly to answer it.

'This is Agent Burke again. Look, we've moved the cars out of the loading dock area. You've got to give me something. Why don't you let the woman go. She's innocent in all this.’

Sara looked uneasily at Neal. As much as she couldn't wait to get out of this place, she wasn't about to walk out and leave him alone with these thugs. Neal looked straight ahead, not giving anything away, holding his breath and hoping that within a few minutes, she would be safely out of reach of these gun wielding crooks.

'Look, Burke we'll give you the maintenance guy but I want something in exchange. I want to walk out of here with my associates and some crates and I want guarantees you won't come after us.’

Neal stared ahead, not blinking. No way was he walking out; he had to find a way to make himself essential to their escape plans so they would hold on to him and let Sara go.

'Let me see what I can do' answered Peter, stalling for time. He knew Neal would be trying to come up with a reason for the men to keep him around and he needed to give him time to put forward a proposal that would make that happen.

The phone went dead and Mateo banged his fist loudly on the desk sending the desk lamp flying onto the floor.

'Dammit' he yelled as he realized he wasn't getting the leverage he thought he had.

'Joey, grab the chick' he shouted to his partner.

Joey walked over to Sara, unshackling her feet from the chair and roughly dragging her to where Mateo stood, boiling mad. She stood, unsteady at first, her legs almost giving out as she let herself be pulled forcefully across the floor to the middle of the room.

Mateo put the gun against Sara's cheek and brought his face up to hers.

'Sara, was it? Tell me, do you have special someone waiting for you at home?' he asked in an effort to intimidate her. When the Fed called back, it would be very helpful for him to hear a frightened hostage in the background.

'Huh?' he insisted.

'I...I have a little girl' Sara said as fear took over.

‘Awww, that's sweet. We'll make sure to mention that to the nice man when he calls back' said Mateo, mocking her.

Neal looked on in horror, realizing he was running out of time. These guys were no strangers to violence and he couldn't chance Sara getting caught in the crossfire. In a calm and resigned voice, he spoke as he watched Sara being manhandled by the overzealous Mateo.

'Look, guys, I think I have a way to get you out of here' he said, softly but authoritatively.

This seemed to get the ringleader's attention and he turned his gaze from Sara towards Neal, a questioning look on his face.

'This better be good Tim because you haven’t been spoken to and you just interrupted my nice little chat with Sara here' he uttered, his anger barely in check.

'I know this hotel inside and out’ Neal said. ‘There are a lot of exits the police have no idea about including the staff entrance which connects underground and comes out on the next street over. They wouldn't have any idea about that.’

He was bluffing of course but his brief examination of the hotel plans had indeed shown an underground tunnel, something which had caught his attention. He recalled reading somewhere that the Kent, built back in the early 1920’s, had been the preferred hangout for the infamous Lucky Luciano and his crew who were known for holding illegal gambling operations within the hotel’s walls. It wasn’t a stretch to imagine the underground tunnel had been built to give the gangster a quick escape route.

Peter listened with interest through his headphones. Neal was playing his trump card – it was a way of getting Sara out of there by making himself essential to the crooks.

'Keep listening Diana' he shouted as he stepped out of the van and made his way to the makeshift command post which had been set up by the hotel entrance.

Peter approached the young hotel manager, quickening his step. ‘What's this about an underground tunnel leading to the staff entrance' he asked.

The young man pointed to the plans, his hands shaking. ‘There’s an old tunnel that we seldom use but it does connect to the staff entrance in the basement' he explained, 'It comes out one block over on Dixon.’

Peter studied the plans, marvelling at how Neal had managed to pick up on that small detail in the few seconds he'd had to study the layout of the hotel. Leave it to an ex-conman to have an eagle eye when it came to building plans and exit strategies.

'Take me there' Peter said, as he followed the young man.

WCWCWC

'You're making that up' Mateo said as he stared Neal down.

'No, I'm not. I can take you' Neal said, hoping to buy time.

'Jose, Joey, keep an eye on the girl. Tim and I are going for a little walk' he said as he pushed Sara towards them and made his way to Neal, roughly untying his feet from the chair.

Neal stood, his hands tied behind his back. Truth be told, he could have gotten out of those ropes in less than thirty seconds when they’d first been put on him but he wasn't looking to escape. For once, he wanted to remain a hostage up until the moment he could bring this whole sordid episode to a peaceful conclusion.

He thought he'd try one last time.

‘Why don't you let her go. She'll just get in the way' he said, nodding towards Sara.

‘That's not your decision to make. Now shut up and start walking' said the thug as he pushed Neal towards the door, keeping the gun on his back.

Neal took once last backward glance at his wife before stepping out of the room and beginning the long trek down the corridor. He hoped he had gotten the layout right because both their lives were depending on it.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Footsteps echoed in the quiet halls as the two men made their way down the corridors of the deserted Kent Hotel. Neal knew the general direction of the tunnel he'd seen on the layout and he began to pray that the plans he'd seen were up to date and that the tunnel was still connected and would lead them outside onto the street. With time, it might have become obsolete and if that was the case, Mateo would know he was bluffing putting himself – and Sara – in even more danger.

They proceeded down the stairs to the second basement level, with Neal's eyes darting up and down every corridor they passed, trying desperately to keep his internal compass working as they continued south from the room they had just left. Finally, they could see a door at the very end of a long corridor and Neal made one last silent plea that this was the door leading to the tunnel he’d seen on paper.

Mateo, keeping one hand on his gun, grabbed the door handle with the other and found it locked.

'This door is locked!' he said angrily.

'We keep it locked' Neal bluffed, trying his best to sound matter of fact. 'If you'll just untie my hands, I can get it open for you.’

'Just hand me the goddamn keys' said Mateo, impatiently.

'I don't have my keys but I can get it open if you just untie me' said Neal, hoping he wasn't pushing his captor too far.

The thief looked at him, uncertain what to do.

'Look, you're holding a gun on me' said Neal. 'I'm not going to try anything but I’m telling you, I can get the door open if you just untie me.’

Mateo reluctantly turned Neal around yanking at the rope and keeping his gun trained on him while he set him free.

'Do it' he said, finally.

Neal reached into his pocket, pulling out his trusty lock pick set and went to work on the door handle, hands slightly shaking under Mateo's watchful eye. It took a minute but the door finally clicked open and Mateo motioned Neal to step through while he followed him with his gun drawn. Neal let out a relieved sigh and began down the long corridor which was located directly under the street, the sound of their footsteps resonating in the empty, damp hall. At the end of the long hallway, they came to a set of stairs and finally a door with a panic bar which opened up onto Dixon Road.

Mateo opened the door slightly and glanced out, noticing it was indeed the next street over from the hotel. There was not a police car in sight and he smiled, realizing that Tim might have just found them their way out.

‘All right, we're going back' he said, roughly tugging at Neal's shirt and pointing him in the direction of the hotel.

WCWCWC

Sara was back sitting in the chair, her hair disheveled and her face flushed when the men returned to the loading dock. Neal glanced at his wife as he was pushed back down onto the chair next to her and tied up once again. He hoped they hadn't hurt her while he was gone but Sara gave no indication either way as she kept her eyes trained on the floor.

'We found a way out the police have no idea about' announced Mateo to his crew. 'Now, start loading up some of this shit on that dolly over there and hurry up.’

'Sure thing, boss' said Joey as he began to gather some of the crates that were littering the room.

'What about Manny?' asked the third man.

'I'll take care of Manny' said Mateo as he grabbed his phone from his pocket and dialled his brother with the new instructions.

‘Change of plans – we'll be coming out of a door right on Dixon between Sixth and Seventh. We should be there in ten, fifteen minutes' Mateo was saying into his phone.

WCWCWC

Peter Burke and Clinton Jones made their way three blocks over from the hotel and waited patiently as they watched Manny Suarez sitting in a black van, biding his time. They watched as the man started the van and began weaving his way through traffic, towards Dixon Road. It was a quiet street away from the hubbub of store fronts and pedestrians. Many businesses had their back door facing onto the street making it more of a loading area — unidentified doors, most of which were strictly exits with no way of getting in. Manny made his way up the street finally settling on the spot his big brother had identified on the phone.

Peter and Jones slowly walked up to the van on either side, guns drawn.

'Manny Suarez' said Peter as he opened the door to the van. 'We're going to need you to step out.’

WCWCWC

The two men worked diligently as Mateo supervised, keeping a close eye on the two hostages who were once again securely tied to their chairs. Neal continued to play along, remaining tethered to his chair and biding his time. He hoped Peter had heard everything and that he'd be waiting for the men on the other end of that door. He wanted them apprehended before they could take off; otherwise, they might decide to bring Sara along for the ride.

'Tim, you push the cart and little lady, you're coming along for insurance purposes' Mateo announced as he grabbed a hold of Sara’s arm and pulled her to her feet.

She stood, taking one last look around the room. ‘Wait, I'm not leaving without my shoes’ she declared as she reached down to grab one good shoe and the second with the heel broken. ‘Those things are worth six hundred bucks!’

'Women!' muttered Mateo under his breath as he proceeded to take her by the arm, pulling her along.

The cart had been loaded up with as many treasures as it could hold and the procession slowly began making its way through the bowels of the hotel with Joey leading the way and Neal following right behind him with the heavy dolly. Jose followed, gun pointed at Neal while Mateo brought up the rear with a barefoot Sara lagging behind.

As they approached the end of the long straight hall which led to the tunnel, Neal became aware of another problem. The cart full of art he was pushing could not be brought down the flight of stairs to the second basement and the men would expect a maintenance guy like him to know exactly where the service elevators were located. He began to review the layout of the hotel in his mind's eye, trying to imagine where they would logically be located in relation to the design of the building. On their first visit minutes before, he’d noticed some rooms were being used for storage on the second basement floor so there had to be an elevator that went down there. He began to look up and down the hallways they passed, feigning fatigue at pushing the heavy cart.

'Move it, Tim!’ yelled Mateo from the back of the pack. 'We haven't got all day.’

Neal glanced up a hallway they were passing, noticing the telltale signs of a large cart used to transport bedding and towels and he slowed down.

'What's going on?' asked Mateo. 'Running out of gas?’

'No, the elevator to go down to the second basement is down this hallway' said Neal, pointing.

The five of them squeezed into the elevator as Neal pushed in the heavy cart. The service elevator made its way down to the second basement and the group stepped out, resuming the order in which they had been moments before. They finally arrived at the door which led to the tunnel and Neal proceeded to push the cart down the long dingy hall with Sara and Mateo continuing to bring up the rear.

There was still the matter of the seven or so steps that needed to be climbed to reach the door leading to the street and Neal knew that once they got there, the men would be preoccupied with making their way up and down the stairs as they loaded up their van with the coveted items. He hoped Peter was waiting on the other side and that the takedown would be done safely without any harm coming to Sara. He was all too aware that, in the blink of an eye, a shot could be fired ending in tragedy.

They arrived at the bottom of the stairs leading outside and Mateo instructed Joey to open the door and see if Manny was waiting outside for them. Joey made his way up the steps and they could hear the door opening and closing as he made his way back.

'The van is right outside' he reported as he returned.

‘All right, start loading up. Tim, you help them' said Mateo as he maintained his grasp on Sara’s arm.

Neal grabbed several of the smaller crates and started to make his way up the steps following Joey who was carrying a large painting. This was the moment of truth. If Peter and the team weren’t out there waiting, he’d have no choice but to continue with the charade and there was a good chance the thieves would take Sara along with them for insurance.

The moment Joey stepped out onto the sidewalk, there was a slight kerfuffle and Neal watched in relief as Peter and Jones grabbed the man, pulling him away while Neal stepped outside, doing his best to shield the sight of the agents from Jose who was mere steps behind him. Peter was ready once again, his gun pointed at the second man’s head as he was grabbed and ushered away into the welcoming arms of the NYPD.

Neal stood in the bright sunshine, exchanging a nervous glance with Peter.

‘Sara’s down there with Mateo’ he murmured to Peter. ‘He’s armed. Don’t go rushing in until I say so.’

Peter wasn’t liking that plan one little bit.

‘Neal!’ he said in warning as his ex-Ci ignored him and stepped back inside, intent on getting his wife out of there.

He knew he would only have a few brief seconds before Mateo grew suspicious that the other two men weren’t with him. After that, all bets were off.

'Where are Joey and Jose?' Mateo asked warily as Neal returned alone.

'They're just putting stuff in the van' replied Neal as he exchanged looks with Sara.

Mateo looked suspiciously from one to the other, picking up on some strange vibe.

'What's the hell’s going on, here?’ he asked as he raised his gun and aimed it straight at Neal. ‘You son of a bitch.’

Sara watched in horror as Neal stood, trapped with seemingly no way out. She looked down at her hands, realizing she had to do something before it was too late. Before Neal knew what had happened, Sara had raised her arm, shoe firmly in hand as she administered a punishing blow to Mateo's head with her four inch stiletto heel, bringing him down in one fell swoop as his gun clattered to the floor.

‘Peter! Now!’ Neal called out, letting his partner know this might be an opportune time to make his presence known.

He grabbed for Sara, pulling her up the stairs as Peter and two of the crew came charging down, reaching Mateo as he began to slowly recover from the shoe attack he’d just suffered.

Sara and Neal made their way out onto the sidewalk as Sara seemed to realize what had just happened and began to shake uncontrollably.

‘Six hundred dollar shoes, huh?' Neal said as he pulled his wife to him, feeling her trembling.

'Hey, they've got to be good for something, right?' she replied as she finally let herself relax.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Sara was checked out by the paramedics and given the green light. She had slightly injured her ankle when she'd broken her shoe and except for some residual and persistent shaking, she was fine. Neal was also given the once over as Peter watched over the couple anxiously.

The Mexican Maniacs were taken into custody and an ambulance took away the unfortunate lone casualty. The loading dock was cordoned off as agents began the job of piecing together all the events before the case could be put to bed. Things slowly began to return to normal as guests were allowed back into the hotel and staff returned to their duties.

Neal and Sara made their way home, arriving just before dinnertime. The phone was ringing as they stepped into the house.

'Hello' said Sara, slightly out of breath.

'Sara, you're home! Are you okay?' said Donna Mason on the other end.

‘Yeah, we're fine. We'll be over to get Hope in a few minutes.’

'Never mind that. Hope is fine. I just saw the news...' said her friend, worried.

‘Right…’ Sara said. ‘I guess it would be on the news. Hope doesn't know, does she?' she added, worried her daughter might see images that would upset her.

'No, of course not. They’re playing out in the yard. You guys take it easy. Let me feed them and I'll bring Hope back after dinner’ she offered.

Sara exchanged glances with Neal. ‘That would be great. Thanks Donna. I could use a shower and a glass of wine' she said as she spied Neal giving her a dirty look. 'Or at least a cup of tea.’

Neal put the kettle on and insisted on drawing a bath for Sara before they had dinner. It had been an angst filled day and although he was used to going undercover, Sara had been left shaken by the events of the afternoon.

He sat on the toilet and chatted with her as she soaked in the tub.

'I don't know which one of us was more shocked when I walked into that room' he said with a nervous chuckle as he recalled the moment when their eyes had met.

Sara laughed sardonically. 'Well, if I had to be tied up with someone, I'm glad it was you.’

'Ditto' said Neal as he rubbed her shoulders.

She looked up at him, still reeling from his exploits. ‘Honey, you were amazing today. I mean… I’ve always known you were cool under pressure but… seeing you in action like that was really something.’

'All subterfuge, ma'am' he replied with a shrug. ‘I was shaking like a leaf worrying something might happen to you. I'll tell you something - I'm never gonna comment on your choice of shoes again' he added with a wicked grin.

The thought of something happening to his wife seemed to trigger an overwhelming urge to hold her in his arms and Neal reached down placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

‘So… how much time do we have before Hope comes home?' he asked with a naughty twinkle in his eye.

WCWCWC

Hope arrived shortly after dinner as her parents welcomed her home. She was put to bed and Neal and Sara stood in silence watching her sleep as they realized how close they’d come to losing everything they held so dear.

'Hi' Sara said as she stepped into their bedroom moments later.

Neal lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, going over the events of the day, grateful they were finally both safe and sound at home.

'I started my period' she said softly as she made her way to bed.

She could see the look of disappointment in Neal’s eyes, a look she knew all too well. He sat up, opening his arms up to her.

‘Come here’ he murmured as she settled in, burying her face in the crook of his neck. He felt her tremble although he wasn't sure if it was due to the news she had just shared or the after effects of the events of the afternoon.

‘You okay babe?’ he murmured softly.

‘No’ she blubbered. ‘It's never okay.’

‘I know’ he whispered as he pulled her in a little tighter.

‘Maybe we should just stop trying’ she said as she looked up at him through teary eyes. ‘It’s too hard to have to go through this every month.’

'I'm sorry…Maybe I should back off and not… push so hard’ Neal conceded.

Tears were welling up in her eyes and although she didn't often let her emotions get the better of her, she was exhausted from her little adventure and she began to cry softly as he held her.

‘Honey, we have a beautiful daughter’ he reminded her. ‘We’re so lucky to have her.’

'I know, I know...' sobbed Sara.

He ran his hand down her back in an effort to comfort her.

‘Let's not look at the calendar anymore’ he murmured. ‘We'll just have sex whenever we feel like having sex... and I promise not to make you lie in bed for twenty minutes with your ankles hanging from the ceiling each time.’

She chuckled softly through her sobs.

'And... I promise I won't bring up the subject until you do. Would that help?' he asked, holding her close.

He could feel Sara nodding against his shoulder as she started to relax. It had been a hell of a day, with unexpected danger and excitement and Neal began to realize the enormity of what he held in his arms. Suddenly, all that mattered was that they were both out of harm's way and that Hope was safe and sound in her bed a few feet away.

WCWCWC

Sara took a deep breath as she stepped into the Kent Hotel at eleven o'clock on Thursday morning. The place looked nothing like it had the day before – not a police car in sight and plenty of staff, busily going about their business.

She made her way to the Fountain Room, walking past the Ballroom and glancing in at the art collection displayed all around the room. There were guards at all the doors as well as a few more milling around and she could see patrons walking around, admiring each other's treasures.

The Fountain Room looked gorgeous. Her instructions had been painfully precise and the hotel staff had done an excellent job of setting it up exactly as she'd asked. The tables were set beautifully with party favours at every place setting and tasteful decorations throughout the room. She made her way to the front, checking out the podium, making sure the microphone was in good working order and intercepting the staff responsible for catering to go over the details of the meal.

The luncheon went off without a hitch, leaving everyone in a feel good mood as they exited, thanking Sara for her hard work. Mr. Bosch approached her on his way out, pleased at the outcome of the event.

'Excellent work as usual, Miss Ellis' he said as he walked past her, a small comment but large out of the mouth of her boss who didn't give compliments easily.

Sara smiled, pleased that she had managed to pull it off. The staff were happy and her bosses were happy, what more could she want…

WCWCWC

'Oh, my God, this is so graphic!' Sara said as she thumbed through the book Neal had picked up for Hope.

He stood by the stove, keeping an eye on the spaghetti sauce as it simmered away. He glanced over at his wife, eyebrows raised.

‘Seriously?’ he said, deadpan. 'How old are you?’

'I mean, are we really ready for her to see this… and know this?' she asked, eyes glued to the pages.

‘Honey, it's a book intended for three to five year olds. It’s fine' he said reassuringly.

‘Oh my God!' she gasped, turning to another page, depicting a couple engaged in sexual intercourse.

‘We can't let her go on thinking men pee inside their partners to get them pregnant’ he said as she stared back, shocked.

'What?'

‘The other night... that's what started the whole thing. Olivia told Hope that daddies peed inside mommies to make babies' he said, grabbing for a handful of pasta and dropping it in boiling water.

Sara looked on, horrified. ‘What? Why didn't you tell me?'

Neal glared at his wife once more. For a strong, secure, independent woman who had always taken charge of her sexuality and had no compunction about running the show in the bedroom when it suited her, she could be such a prude.

‘Look, if she's old enough to ask, she's old enough to know the basics’ he said as the sound of soft footsteps were heard nearby, bringing their conversation to an abrupt end.

'Is dinner almost ready?' Hope called out as she made her way into the kitchen.

WCWCWC

'Daddy got you a new book, did you see?' Sara asked as Hope slipped into her pyjamas.

Hope glanced over on the bed where she could see the book lying there. She’d begun to recognize certain words and could read simple texts. Sara saw her squint as she tried to understand the title of the book.

'A book about babies?' she asked, seemingly confused.

'Well, Daddy said you had some questions the other night about how babies are made so we thought you might like this book' Sara replied, nervous yet buoyed by the fact she was holding a book that held the answers to all the questions her daughter might possibly have.

Hope settled in bed and Sara opened the first page of the book revealing drawings of an anatomically correct naked man and woman, something Hope was already familiar with. They briefly discussed the various body parts and Sara would have been happy to call it a day only to re-open the book once Hope hit her teens but her daughter had other ideas. She took the book from her mom's hands and turned the page, continuing to glance at the pictures and asking questions as she went.

'Does Daddy do this to _you_?' she asked, her eyes curious as she glanced at the picture of a couple engaged in sex.

'Well, not… well, he doesn't do it TO me, honey. See, the mommy is smiling in the picture. It feels good when Daddy holds me in his arms and kisses me….’

'But the other night, you were making those strange noises. Did it hurt?' she asked, genuinely concerned.

'No, of course not' said Sara. She sure as hell didn’t want to leave her daughter with the mistaken impression her dad would ever do anything to hurt her.

'It was a… a happy noise' she said rather awkwardly as Hope continued studying her face.

It was one thing to talk about the mechanics of sex and its role in making babies but talking about her own sex life with Neal to her four-year-old just wasn't sitting well with her.

'You know that ice cream you had at Grandma June’s the other day – the one you really liked?' she asked, deciding on a different approach.

'The fudge chocolate supreme with chocolate chips?' asked Hope, smiling as she remembered.

'Yeah, well the other day when you were having it, you were making some moaning noises, remember?' Sara said as she gave her daughter a gentle shove with her shoulder.

Hope smiled. ‘Because it tasted good.’

‘Well, sex is sort of like that’ Sara said, hoping she wasn’t opening a whole other can of worms.

She could see her daughter’s mind wandering, like every normal four-year-old with an overactive imagination and an inability to focus for longer than a few minutes.

Hope looked up, closing the book. ‘Mommy, tomorrow night, could I have the dinosaur book?' she asked.

Thank heavens for short attention spans, Sara thought as she gladly took the book from Hope and set it on the nearby bookcase.

She hugged her and placed a kiss on the top of her head. ‘Tomorrow night, you can have any book you want' she said in relief.

La fin


End file.
